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Owners of Pensacola vacation rentals upset over ban as hotels allowed to operate

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Margaret Hostetter shows one of her short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

Margaret Hostetter shows the heavy curtains and blinds that cover the windows in one of her short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

The Information & Guest Book in one of Margaret and Kelly Hostetter's short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

Margaret Hostetter shows the information and guestbook in one of her short-term rental properties in East Hill on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Hostetter has been unable to rent the unit since an executive order March 27 barring short-term vacation rentals in the state. Gregg Pachkowski/gregg@pnj.com

The master bedroom in one of Margaret and Kelly Hostetter's short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

Margaret Hostetter gives a tour of the kitchen in one of her short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

A bedroom in one of Margaret and Kelly Hostetter's short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

The living room in one of Margaret and Kelly Hostetter's short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

The living room in one of Margaret and Kelly Hostetter's short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Although Florida hotels were allowed to reopen, Air B&B's and short-term rentals like this one are still forbidden to accept guests. Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com

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Navarre resident Holly Rasoli depends on the money that her one-bedroom vacation rental on Perdido Key brings in to supplement her small pension.

But while hotels are considered an essential business and allowed to operate during the coronavirus pandemic, Rasoli and other vacation rental owners aren't allowed to rent out their units during the first phase of Florida's reopening efforts.

Many said they're concerned about the uncertainty of when they can reopen and confused about why they're being treated differently than hotels.

"I depend on my renters for things — like right now, I've got to replace a water heater in my home and I've got to redo my roof and I don't have that income coming in to do it," said Rasoli, whose rental brings in about $1,400 a week during the height of the tourism season beginning Memorial Day.

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Margaret Hostetter shows the heavy curtains and blinds that cover the windows in one of her short-term East Hill rental properties in Pensacola on Wednesday.(Photo: Gregg Pachkowski, gregg@pnj.com)

Rasoli said she had regular renters scheduled for the week of May 15 who have stayed at her condo for years. Because of the ban on vacation rentals in Florida, they canceled and booked a vacation in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Rasoli is concerned they won't be back next year.

"It's just not fair," Rasoli said. "I'm confused. And my condo has this big open beach, nothing to the west of us at all. It's so easy for people to spread out."

"I don't feel like there's equity," said Rhonda Seaton-McNeill, who owns a rental house in Navarre Beach that she purchased last year and had hoped to rent out. "People are coming to visit and for some reason, renting a home is not OK but crowding a bunch of people in a hotel room is OK. And that's where my problem comes in."

In a March 27 executive order, DeSantis ordered the ban on vacation rentals but allowed hotels, motels, inns, resorts and time-share facilities to stay open. At the time, he said it was necessary to discourage people from other states, particularly hot spots like New York and Louisiana, from visiting Florida and spreading the coronavirus.

Last week, DeSantis extended the ban on vacation rentals indefinitely. For now, vacation rentals are not allowed to reopen under the Re-Open Florida Task Force's guidelines until the second phase of the state's reopening, which does not have a set date. Even then, the rentals can only be rented to Florida residents and the owners must wait 72 hours between rentals.

"The Florida resident thing doesn't make any sense to me because there's parts of Florida that have a much higher rate (of the coronavirus) than a lot of the states that we've had visitors coming in from," Seaton-McNeill said. "Somebody from Pensacola is not going to come rent my house in Navarre Beach. It doesn't make sense."

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Margaret Hostetter shows the information and guestbook in one of here short-term East Hill rental properties on Wednesday.(Photo: Gregg Pachkowski/gregg@pnj.com)

Margaret Hostetter owns four vacation rental homes in Pensacola, which is her main income besides social security.

Hostetter said between spring break and Labor Day is her most lucrative time for renting. When the beaches reopened, she started getting requests for booking but couldn't accept any of them.

"People want the option and, I guarantee you in many cases, when we have guests coming to Florida or to Escambia County, if they don't have vacation rental homes that they can rent, they aren't coming here," Hostetter said. "That's the experience they want. ... We have a real niche here."